What A Drag... || Shikamaru x reader

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Edited: 04/06/24

Reuploaded: 06/06/24

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L/n clan names Old --> New

Zyra --> Zera

Luca --> Rikuto (there aren't any L names, but I've been advised to switch L with R)

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The next day I was just walking through the forest, and I stumbled across Shikamaru, Temari, Konohamaru and his friends.

"What's going on here?" I asked, everyone's heads turned to me and Temari came flying over, drowning me in a tight hug.

"It's been so long since I saw you, y/n!" she shouted, as she hugged me. I smiled and slipped out of the hug.

"I suppose it has," I nodded as Shikamaru walked over and stood beside me. He grabbed my hand and rested his chin on my shoulder.

"How's Gaara and Kankuro?" I asked as Temari eyed our position.

Temari's PoV

"They're OK," I replied to y/n.

So y/n is the person Shikamaru is dating?

"And you?" she asked.

"I'm... Fine..." I replied before gesturing to the two of them, "what's going on here?"

"Y/n is my girlfriend," Shikamaru replied. My heart seemed to stop.

I see...

"I wish you all the best. I should go," I replied, turning and waving before quickly walking off.

So y/n is the one who started dating Shikamaru.

I feel kind of jealous about that, but I guess... As long as they're happy, I'm happy.

Your PoV

Temari left and Shikamaru looked down at Konohamaru and his group.

"You three go back to the village, Konohamaru, go get yourself healed up," Shikamaru tells him.

"Yes, big brother Shikamaru," Konohamaru looked away ashamed but walked away with his friends.

We stood in silence for a while.

"So why're you out here?" Shikamaru asked me.

"I'm escaping the work before this afternoon where it'll be all hands on," I replied with a sigh, sitting down at a tree, Shikamaru sat next to me, and I laid my head on his shoulder. He laid his on top of mine.

"What're you going to be doing?" he asked me.

"I'll be going over the ice manipulations," I replied.

"For whom?" Shikamaru asked.

"The children," I replied, he moved from me and looked at me.

"Children? Why?" he asked.

"War," I replied, he nodded, and we returned to our position.

"It's a drag," he said.

"What is?" I asked.

"This. Not being able to see you every day. The war. The war council. The fact I'm seeing lady Tsunade so much more than I'm seeing you..." he told me before kissing my head.

"I'm sorry, I've been so busy recently," I apologised, "I really hate not being able to see you. When I do see you, it's because of the war council."

"Even then, you're by Lady Tsunade's side or Lord Homura and Lady Koharu. Speaking of those two, how come you guys seem buddy-buddy?" Shikamaru asked. I took a breath in as I thought about the pair of them.

"I suppose it was because of Danzo. When he was Hokage, I was constantly meeting with Lady Koharu and Lord Homura," I replied, "they wanted my opinion on Danzo. My opinion on him as Hokage. They took my honesty and accepted it."

"I see..." he nodded, and we fell silent. He was holding my hand and squeezing it slightly.

This was nice.

The forest was peaceful, and we were alone in the silence just listening to the birds chirping and the trees leaves just rustling lightly in the wind.

A bird came chirping loudly over us.

"Oh, what a drag," Shikamaru sighed before getting up, "Lady Tsunade needs me. See you later?"

"Yeah, oh! Shikamaru! I'm working in district B, the underground building. If you can't find me, that's where I usually am... At the moment at least," I told him, also standing, "time to work."

"Yeah," he nodded and wrapped his arms around me again, kissing my forehead and then my lips, "I'll see you later. Work hard!"

"You too!" I called back before waving and walking away.

Time to work.

Ugh—time to work...

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"Alright, you ready, Rikuto?" I asked the boy, he was sat nervously in front of me, "I've never done this before but from what I've heard, it might hurt a little bit."

"O-ok, lady y/n," Rikuto nodded his head at me and I pulled a scroll, bit into my finger to draw blood and then wrote 'ice trigger' across it before doing the hand signs, placing one hand on the scroll and the other on Rikuto's head.

"Ice pull jutsu!" I muttered.

Rikuto tried to pull away as he screamed out in pain, but I made sure to keep my hand on his head. He was in so much pain.

How can I do this to dozens of people?!

How can I listen to their screams like this?

I had to close my eyes so I couldn't see his pain. I could hear it still. Maybe I should get some earplugs because it hurts to hear them scream like this.

After about half an hour his screaming stopped, and cold air started flowing off him. I opened my eyes to see his staring back at me sadly, a snowflake in both of them.

"I'm so sorry that you had to go through that, Rikuto," I apologised to him, pulling him into a hug. He hugged me back and sobbed into my shirt.

"I-it h-hurt so m-much," he cried, clinging onto me tightly.

"I know," I whispered, picking his small 10-year-old self up, and carrying him out of my office and back up the stairs. His parents were waiting up there.

"I'm sorry," I apologised to his parents. His Mother had tears in her eyes and his Dad looked angry but hurt, neither said anything to me though. Then I passed Rikuto to his Dad.

I'd prefer it if they did say something.

Shout. Scream. Tell me I'm wrong and there's another way. Anything.

But nothing.

Silent understanding and acceptance.

I turned to see Zera and Kye behind me.

"I can't..." I shook my head, "it hurts to hear them scream like that."

They looked at me sympathetically.

"We could hear him from up here," Kye told me, "I bet it was worse down there though."

"I don't want to do this," I told them. They looked at me sadly.

"You have to. They know you have to, and we are all here to support you through all of this," Zera says, she let's go of Kye's hand and walked over to me. Giving me a light hug and then looking at me seriously.

"You can do it, y/n. I believe it you, we all believe in you!" Zera urged, "now, shall we go to the next person?"

I inhaled deeply.

"Right," I nodded before walking back downstairs.

Time to work.

I guess...